Tetanus

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Tetanus affects skeletal muscle, a type of striated muscle used in voluntary movement. The other type of striated muscle, cardiac, or heart muscle, cannot be tetanized because of its intrinsic electrical properties.The tetanus toxin initially binds to peripheral nerve terminals. It is transported within the axon and across synaptic junctions until it reaches the central nervous system. There it becomes rapidly fixed to gangliosides at the presynaptic inhibitory motor nerve endings, and is taken up into the axon by endocytosis.

The effect of the toxin is to block the release of inhibitory neurotransmitters glycine and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) across the synaptic cleft, which is required to check the nervous impulse. If nervous impulses cannot be checked by normal inhibitory mechanisms, the generalized muscular spasms characteristic of tetanus are produced.

The toxin appears to act by selective cleavage of a protein component of synaptic vesicles, synaptobrevin II, and this prevents the release of neurotransmitters by the cells Passive immunization with human tetanus immune globulin (TIG) shortens the course of tetanus and may lessen its severity. A dose of 500 U may be as effective as larger doses. Therapeutic TIG (3,000-6,000 units as 1 dose) has also been recommended for generalized tetanus. Other treatment measures include ventilatory support, high-calorie nutritional support, and pharmacologic agents that treat reflex muscle spasms, rigidity, tetanic seizures and infections.